Registering coin bank



March 1, SCHNABQLK REGISTERING COIN BANK 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Au Q22, 1946 J INVENTOR ATTORN EY March 1, 1949- F. SCHNABOLK REGISTERING COIN BANK 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 22," 1946 Patented Mar. 1, 1949 REGISTERING COIN BANK Fred Schnabolk, Brooklyn,

N. Y., assignor to Kalon Radio Corp., Brooklyn, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application August 22, 1946, Serial N 0. 692,292

2 Claims. 1

This invention relates to registering toy banks.

One object of the invention is to provide a toy bank of the character described having improved means of a particularly simple and efiicient nature whereby the toy bank is adapted to be highly compact and inexpensive in manufacture.

Another object of the invention is to furnish a toy bank having very few movable parts and capable of long operation without getting out of order, and serving nevertheless to control the insertion and removal of the coins and to register the amount contained in the bank.

Another object of the invention is to provide a toy bank, the parts whereof are so constructed and arranged as to greatly facilitate the assembling thereof.

Another object of the invention is to furnish a toy bank the casing of which may be made of very light gage metal suitably reinforced by the registering gear of the bank to reliably resist any tendency against improperly forcing open the door of the bank.

Another object of the invention is to provide a toy bank having its coin removal door and the locking means therefor arranged and coordinated in an improved manner for increased reliability, and to permit opening of the door only when the bank has received a predetermined number of coins.

A particular object of the invention is the provision of an improved toy bank such that the insertion of a coin thereinto for acuating the door locking mechanism is impossible unless the door is first closed, thus precludin a condition where the prematurely closed lock may prevent closing of the door and consequently cause possible breakage of the bank.

Another object of the invention is to furnish a toy bank having improved spring means, preferably of one-piece construction, actuable at least in part by a coin and providin gear turning and locking pawls preferably so engaged with a regiistering or door-locking gear as to be maintained always in operative relation to the teeth of the gear.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the specification proceeds.

With the aforesaid objects in view, the invention comprises the novel features, combinations and arrangements of parts hereinafter described in their preferred embodiments, pointed out in the subjoined claims, and illustrated in the annexed drawing, wherein like parts are designated by the same reference characters throughout the several views.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a view in front elevation showing a toy bank embodying the invention.

Fig. 2 is a view in rear elevation thereof.

Fig. 3 is a top plan View of the toy bank of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is an inside View in elevation of the front casing section with its operating parts in position for opening the rear door.

Fig. 5 is an inside view in elevation of the rear casing section showing the coin removal door.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the coin operated spring means for controlling the registering or door-locking gear.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary view like that of Fig. 4 with parts in section and showing a coin partly inserted to actuate the spring means, with the gear advanced to a door-locking position.

Fig. 8 shows the opposite face of the gear carrying certain registering indicia along the circular legend areas.

Fig. 9 is an enlarged sectional View taken on the line 9-9 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary sectional view taken through the center of the coin bank and showing the coin removal door in open position.

Fig. 11 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view showing a pawl with an aligning means laterally engaging its gear.

Fig. 12 is a fragmentary view partly in section and partly in elevation with a coin illustrated in dot-dash lines to show the seating and guiding cooperation of the spring means with the coin in course of actuation of the former by the coin.

The advantages of the invention as here outlined are best realized when all of its features and instrumentalities are combined, but useful embodiments may be produced involving less than the whole.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art to wh ch the invention appertains, that the same may be incorporated in several different constructions. The accompanying drawing, therefore is submitted merely as showing a preferred exemplification of the invention.

Referring in detail to the drawing, I5 denotes a toy bank embodying the invention. The same includes a casing l6 comprising a box-like section l1 having a front wall l8 and a side wall IS a portion of which constitutes a top wall 20 having a coin receiving slot 2i. For compactness, the corner portions of the casing section are angular as shown at 22. A companion casing section or rear cover 23 is of generally similar configuration and includes a wall 24 with certain marginal flanges 25 which are separate of each other and are adapted to be sprung inwardly to be snugly received in the section ll. The width of these flanges may be substantially less than the depth of the front section H and they may have teats 26 outwardly struck therein for snap-in engagement in holes 2'! of the side walls l9. Intermediate of the flanges 25, the angular portions 28 extend outwardly sufficiently to abut the rear edges of the angular portions 22 of the front section to afford stops to limit the entrance of the cover 23 with the teats 25 engaged in their holes 21. Within the front casing section H is a ear 3|] which may be made of relatively heavier gage metal than the casing. This gear is formed with any suitable or relatively square teeth 3|, the adjacent peripheral portion of the gear being inwardly bent at 32 in order to slightly dish the gear and space the teeth 3| away from the front wall I8 with which the gear is otherwisein direct sliding contact. A rivet or eyelet 33 interconnects the gear with the front wall 18 so that the latter is in generally central relation to the front casing section It will be understood that the gear is of sufiicient size and has a suficient number of teeth to correspond to the predetermined number of coins that are to be deposited in the toy bank. The face of the gear which confronts the wall I8 is provided with indicia to indicate the amount of money deposited, and where a coin is inserted each day, the indicia may also indicate the days of the week in recurrent series. In Fig 8 the circular area defined by dotted lines and bearing the legend amount at 34, contains a circular series of numerals each corresponding to a tooth 3|. A similar area at 35 bearing the legend day indicates the days of the week, as Sunday, Monday, etc., corresponding to the different teeth 3|. If the bank is to remain locked until fifty dimes have been deposited, then the gear will have fifty teeth, and there will be fifty numerals at 34 of the amounts deposited, and at 35 there will be 50 markings for the different days of the week. In the front wall it are formed the window openings 36, 31 correspondin respectively to the indicia 34; 35 for a step by step display of indicia corresponding to the position of the gear and the number of coins received. To avoid marring of the indicia, the contacting faces of the gear and of the front wall may be highly smooth or suitably treated for that purpose. When the fifty coins have been deposited, a slot opening 38 in the gear 3|] may lie in the vertical plane of its axis and in register with a similar slot opening 39 in the front wall l8 as shown in Figs. 1 and 4, in order to release a coin door to permit the same to be opened for removal of the coins as hereinafter described. When the slot openings 33 and 39 are out of register with each other, as shown in Fig. '7, the coin removal door is locked.

Coordinated in an improved manner with the coin slot 2| and the gear 30 is a spring means 4%] which is preferably a one-piece construction. The same may consist of a strip member 4| having a hole 42 whereby it is secured to the top wall 20 as by a rivet or eyelet 43. In Fig. 4 this point of securemen-t is remote from the coin slot 2|, the spring means extending at least partially thereunder. At its other end, the spring means is formed with an extension 44 to obtain additional bearing against the front wall I8 with which it lies in contact, and thus a single rivet may suffice to securely hold the spring against lateral shifting. Beginning at a point adjacent to the rivet, the strip member 4| is slotted at 45 to form a relatively narrow tongue 36 extending rightward in relative proximity to the top wall 25, except that it is bent at 4! to form a downwardly inclined pawl 68 for engaging the teeth of the gear 36 in a sufilciently strong mannor to resist a strong force tending to turn the gear 38 in either direction. The right angle extension is at a side edge of the pawl 3 nearest to the front wall It projects to lie betwen the latter and the teeth 3| of the gear. While the ear may thus be caused to spring slightly away from the wall E8, the space for the finger ts is provided mainly by the inwardly dished shape of the gear at 32 as further shown in Figs. 9 and 11. Along a prolongation of an edge of the slot 45, the strip member 4| is reduced in width to form the substantially narrower strip springed section 553, the latter having a downwardly oii'set portion 5| to add to the resilience of the section 5%. By reason of the reduced width of the section 59, the same clears the coin slot 2! which is formed adjacent to the front wall I3, but in sufficiently spaced relation thereto, in order to clear the gear 3%. At its free end portion, the section 50 is increased in width at 52, this portion being downwardly inclined so that its extreme end portion 53 constitutes a pawl. for the gear 35. At right angles to the portion 53 there is provided a finger 54 connected thereto and adapted to lie between the gear and the front wall l8 in the same manner and for the same purpose as described for the finger 4-9, and as illustratedin Fig. 11. lhese fingers re and 54 cooperate to maintain the strip member 4| against lateral movement and to maintain the same proper in operative relation to the gear and to the coin slot. Further, the pawls 43 and 53 cooperate with each other tosimultaneously engage the gear teeth in a suificiently strong manner to resist any ordinary force tending to turn the gear. However, when a coin is inserted, the pawl 53 serves to advance the ear one tooth in a clockwise direction with the pawl 48 yielding upwardly as hereinafter described.

The operation of the spring means all by a coin and the structure involved will be best understood bycomparing Figs. 4 and 6 with Figs. '7 and 12, the latter including a coin 60 inwardly projected to a point immediately before release into the coin bank, with the gear 30 almost advanced to the full extent of a tooth. For this purpose the spring means is provided with coin seating and guiding means in advance of the pawl 53 but adjacent to the pawl arm 52. Such seating and guiding means includes a downwardly inclined guide portion 5|, the arrangement of which is facilitated by upwardly bending the spring means at 62 at the junction between the spring section 59 and the pawl arm 52. The guide portion 6| ispreferably of a channel shape shown in Figs. 6 and 12 and which increases in depth toward its free end. This channel portion underlies that end of the coin slot 2| which is nearest to the actuator pawl 53, as may also be seen in Fig. 3 and its purpose is to avoid lateral deflection of the coin especially into the path of the gear teeth 3| which are close nearby. As the coin moves downwardly to defiect the spring as in Fig. 7, the strain on the relatively thin metal becomes considerable and the coin seats evenly instead of merely on an edge of the metal, thereby reducing wear and distortion. Cooperating with the channel portion 6| is a lug 63 connected to spring section 50 and located adajacent to the opposite end of the coin slot, this lug being spaced from the gear 30 and serving to downwardly guide the coin against shifting about in the channel portion. To obtain an accurate advance of the gear 30, the coin 60 operates in the manner of a wedge or cam between the channel portion 6! and an end 54 of the coin slot 2|, as shown in Fig. 7, the coin being free of or spaced from the right hand end of the coin slot. With the usual knurled coin, the same pivots about the edge at 64 and rolls in the channel guide 6|. The relationship produced is such that the coin tends to elongate the bend or offset portion 5| of the spring means at the same time that the wedging action keeps it securely seated in the channel portion 6| for exertin downward pressure on the arm 52 to advance the pawl 53. As the coin passes dead centre, the gear 30 has been advanced a tooth and the pawl 48 snaps down to lock the gear against reverse movement; then the coin drops into the bank chamber, releasing the spring means 40 so that the pawl 53 is retracted by return of the sprin to snap into engagement with its next upper tooth, both pawls being thus again in the initial position shown in Fig. 4. More specifically, when the spring is depressed by the coin, the pawl 53 advances the gear one tooth causing a tooth to pass the pawl 48, the superior force of the pawl 53 overcoming the substantial stiifness of the pawl 48, and the latter then snapping into lockin engagement with the next succeeding tooth to again lock the gear. This action is feasible because both pawls operatively extend in the same angular direction and because of the angular relation of the different pawls to the respective teeth engaged thereby which permits advance of the pawl 53 to overcome the pawl 48. Retraction of the spring to its normal positions causes retraction of the pawl 53 with the latter easily riding over a tooth to engage the next succeedin tooth without disturbing the gear which remains locked by the superior force of the relatively stiff pawl 48. In this normal position, both pawls are in engagement with the gear. The tolerances for the coin are rather small, and if the coin were able to shift about, the device would not operate satisfactorily. Hence the importance of the guide means 6|, 63 and also of the gear engaging fingers 49, 54 which with the gear and wall 28 serve as a movable guide means for the spring device to maintain it in accurate relation to the coin slot without interfering with the operation of the spring and gear.

The coin removal door is mounted on the rear or cover section 23 of the casing and is shown in closed position in Figs. 5 and 9 and in open position in Fig. 10, a portion of its locking means including the slots 38, 39 in open position in Figs. 1 and 10 and in closed position in Fig. 7. The rear wall 24 may have a rectangular opening 66 having an outwardly offset mar inal clearance portion 61 at its lower edge and having inward extending flanges 68 along its side edges serving to stiffen the same and being so narrow as not to impede removal of the coins but being increased in width at their upper ends to provide bearing sections 69 having upwardly opening slots or bearing holes 10. The door 65 is reenforcingly flanged at H along its side edges, these inward extending flanges being narrow but increased in width at their upper portions 12 from which are outwardly struck teats or eyes 13 adapted to freely enter the openings 10 for mounting the door for angular movement with the door flanges H sliding between the casing flanges 68 to produce a reenforced mounting. At its lower edge the door is inwardly offset at 14 to seat in the offset 61 of the rear Wall 24 with the door lying in the plane of the latter. To this offset portion is secured a bar 15 carrying a rigid pin 76 registering with the opening 39 in the casing front wall l8 as the door 65 swings inwardly to open position. For closing the door, a strip spring 11 is riveted to the rear wall 24 at l8, this spring being preferably bent or bowed as at 15 so that it may serve as a stop against the gear 38 to limit inward opening movement of the door without strain or distortion on the pin 16. The free end of the bowed portion is adapted to bear strongly against the door at the angle 80 of the offset 14 or against the bar 15 thus realizing the function of urging the door 65 downwardly to retain the trunnions 73 in the open bearing holes 10.

The operation of the coin bank will now be briefly described. The operator inserts a coin through the coin slot 2i and presses hard on it to cause deflection of the spring means 46 and consequent rotation of the gear for one tooth. The indicia means 34, indicates the operation at the corresponding windows 36, 31, and since these indicia are directly on the gear 30, a simple and accurate structure is afforded for this purpose. When a sufliclent number of coins have been deposited to represent a predetermined amount of money, the gear 30 has made a complete rotation, whereupon the slots 38, 39 in the gear 38 and in the front casing wall respectively are in register and in proper aligned relation with the pin 16 of the rear coin removal door $5. The latter is maintained closed by the spring TI to prevent spilling of the coins, and therefore the operator pushes the door inward as shown in Fig. 10, the pin 16 entering the slots which are provided for clearance, and the operator may now shake the coins out of the bank. Upon release, the door is instantly closed by the spring Tl so that the coin bank is again ready for further deposits. However, should the operator continue pressing the door inward inadvertently or otherwise, it Will not be possible for him to insert a coin because the pin 16 will prevent rotation of the gear 30 and accordingly the spring means 40 will not be able to deflect downwardly to pass the coin. It is therefore impossible to close the looking means to a position which would prevent closing of the door as has occurred in devices heretofore known. Upon passage of the first coin, the gear 30 has been moved sufficiently so that the slot 38 therein is no longer in alignment with the pin 16. The door is thus locked closed because the pin will abut the gear.

Accordingly the gear may be made of relatively heavier age metal than the bank casing so that the latter may be light in weight and it nevertheless aifords a support or reenforcement for the gear at the point of abutment With the pin 16. The free end of the latter has sliding contact with the adjacent face of the gear as the gear turns, and this contact may be sufiiciently ac curate so that the door does not move even to a small degree. By pivoting the door near the top of the casing, the pin 16 is remote from the coin entrace and the door may be made suf ficiently long to afford an ample opening and leverage for the opening and closing of the door. By reason of the split or open bearings of the stud portion '13 in the slot 15, a quick assembly is possible, with the spring T1 acting longitudinally on the door at to maintain the bearing portions in engagement, the spring being bowed at 19 to freely lock with the door at 80 and to form a stop against the gear limiing inward movement of the door and avoiding any tendency to bending of the pin it against an edge of the slot openings 38', 39. The flanges 63 and ii are used not only as reinforcements, but constitute a track or guide for the door, A unitary spring means 40 provides the cooperating advancing and locking pawls 53 and d5 respectively, and when the spring means downwardly deflected by a coin as in Fig. 7, downward tension on the pawl 48 is increased, and both of these pawls may also cooperate to lock the gear against rotation in either direction except by operation of a coin. The latter acts in a wedgelike manner between an end 64 of the coin slot 21 and a downwardly sloping channel seat iii of the spring means, the latter cooperating with the lug or wing 53 on the coin slot to accurately guide the coin against lateral shifting or tilting, whereby an accurate relation is always maintained between the points at El and 64, The gear 36 is utilized as an anchorage for the relatively long spring means by reason of the portions 49 and 54 engaging between the front wall 18 of the casing and the dished peripheral portion of the gear, thereby assuring precision of the coin with relation to the points 6! and 64, and also assuring that the pawls are always in accurate relation to the gear teeth. The device can be assembled in two halves as shown in Figs. 4 and 5 after which it is merely necessary to connect these two halves together in any suitable manner as by teats 28 carried by the resilient flanges 25 so as to be adapted to be snapped into the perforations 2'1 in the side walls of the main casing section l'i.

I claim:

1. A coin bani; having a casing having a coin slot, a coin registering means therein including a rotary gear, and a one-piece strip spring fastened at one end to the casing at a point remote from the slot, the spring being otherwise relatively free, the spring extending from said point toward and substantially beyond the slot in the general direction of the length of the latter, the spring comprising a resilient tongue pawl portion for locking said gear, the locking pawl portion being so closely adjacent to the fastening point as to be quite stiff, said locking pawl portion being adjacent to the near end of the coin slot, the spring having a pawl portion for advancing gear, the advancing pawl portion being substantially beyond the remote end of the coin slot, the spring having a section intermediate of the pawl portions, said section having a temporary seating portion for a coin entering the slot, the seatin portion being adjacent to the advancing pawl portion and the remote end of the coin slot, the seating portion cooperating with the near end of the slot to temporarily seat the coin by a wedging action of the latter therebetween, and the forcing in of the coin causing elongation of the spring, the spring having a bent portion adjacent to the fastening point and being free of the locking pawl portion, said bent portion tending to deflect under tension to permit the said elongation, the forcing in of the coin, also causing a deflection of the spring in a direction away from the coin slot to cause advance of the advancing pawl portion, said intermediate section having a normal position with both of the pawl portions being in engagement with the gear, said section being deflected from said normal position by pressure of the coin on the seating portion to actuate the advancing pawl portion to move the gear one tooth with the locking pawl portion being thus caused to snap into engagement with a succeeding adjacent tooth to again lock the gear while the coin passes and releases the seating portion for a return of the intermediate section to its normal position accompanied by a restraction of the advancing pawl portion to snap over and engage the next adjacent tooth of the gear which remains locked by the locking pawl portion.

2. A coin bank having a casing having a coin slot, a coin registering rotary gear, and a one piece strip spring fastened at one end to the casing at a point remote fromthe coin slot, the spring being otherwise relatively free, the spring extending from said point toward and beyond the coin slot lengthwise of the latter, the spring comprising a resilient locking pawl for the gear so close to the fastening point as to be quite stifi, the spring having an advancing pawl for the gear spaced substantially beyond the far end of the coin slot, both pawls pointing in the same angular direction, the spring having a section intermediate of the pawls, the section having a temporary coin seating portion adjacent to the far end of the slot, the section having a normal position with both pawls engaged with the gear, the seating portion under pressure by an entering coin causing deflection of the intermediate section until the coin snaps past the seating portion to enter the casing and thus to release the section, the intermediate section upon occurrence of said deflection causing the advancing pawl to move to turn the gear one tooth with sufficient force to cause the locking pawl to snap into locking engagement with the next succeeding tooth, retraction of the section to normal position causing retraction of the advancing pawl to engage the next succeeding tooth, While the gear remains locked by the locking pawl.

FRED SCHNABOLK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,015,408 Strauss Jan. 28, 1912 1,700,448 Prince Jan. 29, 1929 2,000,323 Farber May 7, 1935 2,079,202 De Cesare May 4, 1937 2,262,475 Stiriss Nov. 11, 1941 

